3.2 – Dalek Empire III – The Healers

The Daleks are offering to help cure a deadly plague, but Galanar’s boss is suspicious and sends him to find out what they are really after.

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Styre
on May 7, 2016 at 8:47 PM

DALEK EMPIRE III

CHAPTER TWO: THE HEALERS

It appears that Nicholas Briggs will spend this third Dalek Empire series with three primary plots, each of which is remarkably engaging. Perhaps the most immediate is the continuing saga of the Graxis Wardens, who quickly learn the true nature of the Daleks. These scenes are structured shakily — Briggs doesn’t have the David Whitaker Dalek style completely down, and as such it is almost impossible to understand how anyone came to trust the Daleks in the first place. The Daleks in “The Power of the Daleks,” for example, exhibited the patience of saints, only revealing their true, violent nature when victory was all but assured. These Daleks, however, are barely-restrained psychopaths, screaming and exterminating at the slightest provocation, which makes for tense scenes at the expense of believability. Fortunately, the sheer energy of the Graxis scenes carries them along. In direct opposition are the brief scenes with Siy Tarkov returning home to meet his daughter Amur (Claudia Elmhirst) — while there’s not much here, it’s reassuring to know that Tarkov hasn’t lost everything in his life. And lastly, David Tennant takes center stage in the third segment, as his Galanar heads undercover to the border territories to engage in some espionage. The consequences quickly spiral into a massive set piece, with Galanar trapped on a Dalek hospital planet, and contemplating Dalek motives as he examines plague victims under the guise of a doctor. It’s naturally bizarre to hear David Tennant’s voice addressed as “Doctor,” but he is easily distinguishable from his television persona. I like the way Briggs structures this play — each plot strand is at a different stage of development, forcing the listener to concentrate. “The Healers” is another solid installment — and what a cliffhanger!